As from 22 March, the main hallway of the building is also being used to house a very interesting project, the first phase of which has been sponsored by the Friends of the National Archives.
President de Marco has been for some time propounding the idea that Malta should have a national portrait gallery. The President said that the collective memory of the Maltese people should be expressed in such a gallery, which would cover different aspects of society, from the mayor to the musician, from the artisan to the artist, from the poet to the prelate.
The first attempts to bring together such a collection were last year, when photographer Tony S. Mangion exhibited a series of portraits entitled The Maltese. Assembled in the prestigious halls of the Palace, the works of Mr Mangion depicted personalities coming from different positions in society.
Through his work, Mr Mangion gives an artistic depiction of the contemporary builders of our nation. But it is also an historical record that captures the feelings and sentiments of most of the subjects.
Mr Mangion’s ideas were greeted with enthusiasm by National Archives head Charles Farrugia and following discussion with various experts in the field, a comprehensive project was developed. The National Memory Project will consist of three phases: the National Portrait Archive, the National Photographic Archive and the National Sound and Film Archive. The target is to preserve the historical record contained in the photographs, films and records of the past.
It was the National Portrait Archive that the President inaugurated on 22 March. The staff of the National Archives prepared an audio-visual presentation exhibiting more than 60 prominent leaders. The photographs are accompanied by biographies and, in some instances, voice-overs. The final product will eventually be available on CD.
Concurrently, a permanent exhibition of portraits of prominent personalities by Mr Mangion was also opened which features Maltese who have distinguished themselves in areas such as politics, music, drama and literature. New portraits will be added monthly and following the identification of a sponsor for the project, the exhibition layout will be revised to accommodate other portraits.
In his speech, Archives head Charles Farrugia explained the different phases of the project and said that this cannot progress if a sponsor is not identified. President de Marco praised the exhibition highly and thanked Mr Mangion for his contribution.